Strategic theory of norms for empirical applications in political science and political economy
Abstract
The study of social norms sprawls across all of the social sciences but the the concept lacks a unified
conception and formal theory. We synthesize an account that can be applied generally, at the social
scale of analysis, and can be applied to empirical evidence generated in field and lab experiments. More
specifically, we provide new analysis on representing norms for application in empirical political
science, and in parts of economics that do not follow the recent trend among some behavioral
economists to build models of the cognitive and motivational states of individuals taken “one at a
time”. Foundational sources for our project are Bicchieri (2006, 2017), Kuran (1995), and Stirling
(2012, 2016). From Bicchieri take that a norm exists in a social structure when a significant networked
subset of individuals share descriptive and injunctive expectations that it regulates their interactions.
From Kuran we take the insight that prevailing norms may come to be widely disliked by participants
in networks but survive because norm suppress public displays of disenchantment. From Stirling we
apply conditional game theory (CGT) to provide the technical resources for building our model of a
norm-regulated social interaction. The example we use is a multi-player Investment/Trust Game.